Horrible way for a company to work too. I came up through the military and the "Pay for Performance" system breeds brownnosers and people screwing other people trying to move up the ladder. I spent many years in corporate aviation and saw the same thing. People tend to worry more about doing extra things to move up versus doing their primary job the best they can do it.
If a pilot screws up, it's not just his job or chances for advancement that are on the line: it's his life. This fact, coupled with the rigorous and constant re-training and re-certification, makes it logical to have pilots advance on a seniority system. I don't want the pilot worrying about doing some "extras" for his boss; I want him (or her) worried about keeping the plane in the air.
But I don't think this can be generalized to other professions. In service professions, for instance, it makes much more sense for employees to advance based on how well they serve their customers. I suspect all the grumbling about rotten or indifferent service from FAs would be reduced significantly if FA advancement were based on performance and willingness to go the extra mile for the customer, rather than on seniority.
I was wondering how involved UA is in a pilot's heath.
1. How often do pilots need their vision and general health checked?
2. Who performs these tests--United or any doctor the pilot wants?
3. Does United want to be kept abreast of all medication the pilots are prescribed by their personal physician?
take that wage and divide it by 384 (that hours away from home on duty for the company) and you get a more realistic hourly wage.
The 384 hours a month seems a bit extreme. Many of us who fly a lot on business don't count the hours sleeping away from home in the denominator of our pay calculations. At least no one that I know of does. Nor do we count commute time from home to office.
I agree that the actual flight hours is not a fair representation of hourly pay; but I submit that counting sleep time and commute time from home to airport in the car is an exageration in the other direction.
The 384 hours a month seems a bit extreme. Many of us who fly a lot on business don't count the hours sleeping away from home in the denominator of our pay calculations. At least no one that I know of does. Nor do we count commute time from home to office.
I agree that the actual flight hours is not a fair representation of hourly pay; but I submit that counting sleep time and commute time from home to airport in the car is an exageration in the other direction.
I actually wasn't counting any commute time, that was time away from my home domicile. I'm gone more than that as a commuter. I count time away from home as work, plain and simple. I may be sleeping in a hotel, but I'm not home in my bed, so I am away working for United.
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These views are my own and do not represent the views of United Airlines or the ALPA.
If a pilot screws up, it's not just his job or chances for advancement that are on the line: it's his life. This fact, coupled with the rigorous and constant re-training and re-certification, makes it logical to have pilots advance on a seniority system. I don't want the pilot worrying about doing some "extras" for his boss; I want him (or her) worried about keeping the plane in the air.
But I don't think this can be generalized to other professions. In service professions, for instance, it makes much more sense for employees to advance based on how well they serve their customers. I suspect all the grumbling about rotten or indifferent service from FAs would be reduced significantly if FA advancement were based on performance and willingness to go the extra mile for the customer, rather than on seniority.
You know, I'd even have to disagree about the F/A's. First of all, there aren't really "promotions" in the FA ranks. You're a flight attendant, you make more the longer you are at United. Now, where we do have "performance" advancement is in supervisors. What I've seen, is the less able F/A's are moved up to supervisors, and then they promote folks like them to other supervisory positions. So in this case, just like I was saying about with the pilots, the FA's that do a great job onboard don't get promoted to supervisory positions. You move up to those positions by getting in close with the current supervisors.
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These views are my own and do not represent the views of United Airlines or the ALPA.
I was wondering how involved UA is in a pilot's heath.
1. How often do pilots need their vision and general health checked?
2. Who performs these tests--United or any doctor the pilot wants?
3. Does United want to be kept abreast of all medication the pilots are prescribed by their personal physician?
1) Airline captains are required to get a Class I physical from an FAA Medical examiner every 6 months. This checks eyes, hearing, EKG at certain ages, cancer checks, stuff like that. A full medical. A F/O is only required to have a Class II physical unless they are type rated and filling in as a captain on the International flights, then they are required to maintain a Class 1 as well I believe.
Most F/O's I think get a Class 1 physical, and then it falls to a Class 2 physical after 6 months for up to a year. Then they will do it again and start it all over again.
2) The pilot finds an FAA Medical Examiner and uses them.
3. Basically no, only certain medications does United medical need to know about. It's listed in our FOM.
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These views are my own and do not represent the views of United Airlines or the ALPA.
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ok here's a silly one.......
in line with this thread where f/t'ers sign their copy of hemisphere's magazine.......
do you folks leave "little notes" (either operationally related or perhaps along the lines of "i was here" ) for future crews.
also, how far in advance do you know the actual a/c you will be driving (day of flight?) and in your class of a/c, do you have a preferred tail #. in other words, oh, cool we got n##### today or oh, cr*p, looks like we got n##### today .
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just my humble opinion but i used to try and stop hockey pucks so what do i know . Nighthawks fans are everywhere
You know, I'd even have to disagree about the F/A's. First of all, there aren't really "promotions" in the FA ranks. You're a flight attendant, you make more the longer you are at United. Now, where we do have "performance" advancement is in supervisors. What I've seen, is the less able F/A's are moved up to supervisors, and then they promote folks like them to other supervisory positions. So in this case, just like I was saying about with the pilots, the FA's that do a great job onboard don't get promoted to supervisory positions. You move up to those positions by getting in close with the current supervisors.
It sounds like what you are saying is that there is performance-based advancement for F/A's, but for some reason it doesn't work very well: poor-performing F/A's advance and the others don't. That of course is not the way it should work, and the fact that it might be that way at UA doesn't invalidate the suggestion that performance-based advancement could enhance service.
According to some of the responses over in the Ask the FA thread, the most junior FA often gets the pursor position, which just makes no sense. A supervisor should hold a supervisory rank and have the ability to influence the advancement (and merit pay increases) of those working under him. There are various means of rating an employee's performance, and as far as I can tell UA doesn't use very many good ones (at least not ones based on customer satisfaction or on-the-job performance) in deciding which FAs to keep or fire, which ones to advance, and which ones to pay more.
But this discussion is now OT for a pilot QnA thread!
do you folks leave "little notes" (either operationally related or perhaps along the lines of "i was here" ) for future crews.
We will occasionally leave operational notes, but it tends to be fairly limited. The FAA prefers us to document anything wrong with the airplane via the electronic logbook, so that there's a record. But we'll occasionally write notes about turbulence and the like.
Quote:
also, how far in advance do you know the actual a/c you will be driving (day of flight?) and in your class of a/c, do you have a preferred tail #. in other words, oh, cool we got n##### today or oh, cr*p, looks like we got n##### today .
We can find out several days in advance, but we generally only look when we're flight planning an hour or so before the flight. I don't know anyone who has preferred tail numbers, but we will occasionally prefer certain configurations. For an afternoon flight to Asia, for example, I prefer an airplane without a bunk room, since I won't sleep, and the non-bunked airplane has a better rest seat for reading or watching movies.
Ever notice any flying differences between tail #'s? Or, do they all come off the factory floor flying exactly alike?
Each jet may have it's little quirks, but not enough to know what to expect when you fly a particular jet. With hundreds of Airbuses, there is no way to remember what each one flies like.
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These views are my own and do not represent the views of United Airlines or the ALPA.
Are the overwater A320s any different in the cockpit? For example, having a few more circuit breakers or some more information shown on the status display?
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Der Flugmeil'faenger bin ich ja, stets lustig, heissa, hopsasa!
Are the overwater A320s any different in the cockpit? For example, having a few more circuit breakers or some more information shown on the status display?
Is it true TCAS doubles as a fishfinder? Ok, lame pilot joke.
I count time away from home as work, plain and simple. I may be sleeping in a hotel, but I'm not home in my bed, so I am away working for United.
Of course you are free to "count" your time as you see fit, but as a very frequent business traveler, this seems insane to me. We all made the choice to work in jobs that require travel, and travelers often don't sleep in their own beds. This is the first time I've heard a traveler say they feel that they are working while they sleep. I cannot fathom your line of thinking here.
) for future crews.
or oh, cr*p, looks like we got n##### today 
.
